Safe Space - Talking Trust and Safety
What does it take to make the Internet a safer place? More importantly, who does it take? Safe Space explores the human side of trust & safety—featuring the leaders, thinkers, and builders working to protect online communities. Hosted by John Starr, VP of Operations and Strategic Impact at Thorn, this podcast dives into the personal journeys of those shaping the future of the digital world—one policy, one decision, and one conversation at a time.
Presented by Safer by Thorn.
Safe Space - Talking Trust and Safety
Aaron Rodericks: Scaling Safety During Rapid Growth
In this revealing conversation, John Starr speaks with Aaron Rodericks, Head of Trust and Safety at Bluesky, about his unexpected journey to become the trust and safety leader at one of today's fastest-growing social platforms.
Rodericks candidly discusses the realities of scaling trust and safety at a pre-revenue startup with just 20 employees total while experiencing explosive growth—from 3,500 to one million new users daily. He shares how this growth forced him to "throw the roadmap in the garbage" and practice ruthless prioritization when facing 250,000 user reports in a single day.
The conversation explores Bluesky's revolutionary approach to moderation—a decentralized model where users and organizations can create their own moderation systems rather than relying on gatekeepers. Rodericks explains how this "composable moderation" shifts power dynamics, allowing communities to create specialized labels for niche and specific issues.
As a self-described "extreme generalist" who allocates small percentages of his capacity to everything from GDPR compliance to disinformation campaigns, Rodericks offers personal insights into the human toll of public-facing trust and safety work. He emphasizes the importance of self-care and finding identity outside work through practices like archery and meditation.
